The Other One
by ImprobableDreams
Summary: We all know the story of Harry Potter, the Boy-Who-Lived. But what if he had a sister, a twin. Meet Scarlett Potter, daughter of Lily and James Potter and learn about her journey through Hogwarts, starting out in a plain Muggle orphanage. Surely school can't be too dramatic, can it?
1. Prologue- Unexpected

Prologue Unexpected

Flora Moore considered her life rather boring; it was after all the same day in day out. Even since she was 26 she had run an orphanage in the greater London area, and 17 years on her life was now ruled by routine. Get up, make sure everyone is fed, send the children to school, and ensure all chores around the building were done, make sure everyone has dinner and goes to bed at lights out. Little did she know that today was the day that routine would change and it would never be the same again.

It was just past eleven when she was woken by a loud hammering on the front door. She rushed to the door praying the noise would not wake anyone else, she opened the door and there on the doorstep stood a handsome young man with black (and slightly too long in Flora's opinion) hair. Although he looked quite ordinary nobody like him had ever been on that street before, however Flora Moore had no idea of this fact. "Take her" he said hoarsely "please."

He shoved the bundle of blankets that lay in his arms into hers. "Her name is Scarlett, Scarlett Lily Potter. Look after her." his voice cracked as he spoke and Flora looked into his dark eyes, seeing the grief there, the unshed tears. The man turned and walked down the steps and into the street before disappearing with a crack. Flora blinked wondering if she had finally lost her sanity. Her attention turned to the bundle in her arms seeing the tiny face of the baby girl who stared up at her with huge, bright green eyes.

* * *

Nearly 4 years later

A man with a long silver beard sat in a comfy armchair in the corner of the small tower. This man's name was Albus Dumbledore and he was the headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, which was, in fact where he was right now. As he sat in his armchair reading there was a sudden movement in the corner of his eye, a quill which was sitting in an empty inkpot twitched then floated upwards and towards the book that lay on the desk beside it.

This was something that had happened many times over the past few hours, however previously the book would snap shut, as if by magic and the quill would return to its place. This was the ancient tradition of selection into Hogwarts School, believed to have originated from the Founders themselves. When a child performed magic for the first time it had to be accepted by both the sensitive Quill of Acceptance and the stern, wary Book of Admittance. The greenish –black quill dipped itself in the empty inkpot and began to write, of its own accord, in the book.

Albus Dumbledore stood, set down his copy of _Transfiguration Today _and stooped over the book, taking care not to touch the leather-bound book, reading what was newly written in the strange silver ink. _Scarlett__ Lily Potter aged 3 years and 11 months_

Dumbledore left the tower with quick strides shutting and relocking the door behind him. He walked briskly through the well-worn halls of the famous school till he arrived at the entrance to an office, he knocked twice before entering. "Minerva, I have good news, it is as I thought" he said to the woman sitting behind her desk "the Potter girl is alive. And she will be coming to Hogwarts."

**A.N I know a bit cliché, Harry's got a sister but hey I couldn't resist. This is my first fanfiction, I would really love some reviews and will hopefully post the next chapter soon. Ciao for now, ImprobableDreams**


	2. Chapter 1- Change

Chapter One- Change

It had been nearly ten years since Scarlett had arrived at the orphanage and the orphanage had not changed at all. It was still an ugly-looking, grey brick building from the outside and tidy, with old fashioned flowery wall-paper on the inside, even the weather seemed the same. Scarlett however, as expected had changed a lot, she was thin to the point of looking slightly underfed, had beautiful dark red hair that fell in waves to her lower back, and the greenest eyes you could imagine, just as the day she had arrived. Scarlett was slightly shorter than average and always found that people towered over her. She was different, few people at the orphanage or at school would talk to her, and so she had few friends. It was not that she was strange in particular, just that strange things tended to happen around her, broken windows and flickering lights when she was angry, rain when she was sad. When she was younger she would make flowers open and close their petals as she wished. Due to this she was labelled a freak and teased relentlessly about her inability to make friends; she however enjoyed the solitude but was not afraid to fight back.

So when Scarlett woke on this exceptionally unexceptional day she did not know that her life was about to take a turn for the better, the new day looked just like every other, grey and gloomy. However a short time after breakfast a visitor came to the door asking to speak to Mrs Moore, visitors were few and far between at the orphanage so everyone was interested, many of the children wandering if someone was going to be adopted. After about half an hour and a cry of shock one of the children was called in then sent to fetch Scarlett Potter. Scarlett came in a rush not wishing to keep Mrs Moore (nor her visitor) waiting. As Scarlett walked into the room the visitor let out a cry of shock.  
"You look exactly like your mother" she exclaimed. Scarlett stared at the stranger, taking in her tidy grey hair, the neat blouse and tartan skirt, this woman looked as if she was not used to the style of clothes she was wearing.  
"You knew my parents?" Scarlett asked hopefully.  
"Of course, I taught James and Lily when they were at school" she replied, before her face slipped into what seemed to be her usual expression of sternness "I am Professor McGonagall, Deputy Headmistress at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, where you, as a witch are able to attend."  
"Wi-wi-wi-witchcraft" Scarlett stuttered nervously,  
Professor McGonagall gave a small smile "Did you not notice you were different? Mrs Moore here certainly did"  
Scarlett turned her questioning gaze to Mrs Moore "From the day you arrived here you were different, weird things happened around you, broken windows and the like. I thought I had gone mad when that man disappeared in front of my eyes all those years ago" Mrs Moore rambled on for a minute or two "anyway, if you are wishing to go I give my permission."  
"Do you wish to go?" Professor McGonagall questioned bluntly looking at her over her square glasses.  
"Of course!" Scarlett almost shouted, although the orphanage was a kind place, she didn't fit in with the other children and was happy for the chance to leave it behind.  
The Professor shot her a disapproving look "Very well then Miss Potter, the new term begins on September the 1st. You can choose to come back here for the Christmas and Easter holidays or to stay at school if you wish. However you are required to return home during the summer. I will take you to buy your school supplies on the 15th of August. So I will see you then" She left the room quickly, shutting the door behind her and not looking back. Mrs Moore turned to Scarlett, "well that certainty explained a lot about you" giving her a slight smile. She handed Scarlett a thick parchment envelope, which she opened hurriedly, she never got mail.

HOGWARTS SCHOOL OF WITCHCRAFT AND WIZARDRY

Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore  
(Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sorc., Chf. Warlock,  
Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards)

Dear Miss Potter,

We are pleased to inform you that you have been accepted at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment.  
Term begins on September 1. We await your owl by no later than July 31.

Yours sincerely,

Minerva McGonagall  
Deputy Headmistress

Scarlett read the green ink, taking note of the post script at the bottom in a different handwriting reading _Do not worry about sending an owl, we have you acceptance already_  
She waited for a moment longer before turning to the second page

HOGWARTS SCHOOL OF WITCHCRAFT AND WIZARDRY

Uniform  
_First-year students will require:_

_1. Three sets of plain work robes (black)_

_2. One plain pointed hat (black) for day wear_

_3. One pair of protective gloves (dragon hide or similar)_

_4. One winter cloak (black, silver fastenings)_

_Please note that all pupils' clothes should carry name tags._

Set Books  
_All students should have a copy of each of the following:_

The Standard Book of Spells (Grade1) _by Miranda Goshawk_  
A History of Magic _by Bathilda Bagshot_  
Magical Theory _by Adalbert Waffling_  
A Beginners Guide to Transfiguration _by Emeric Switch_  
One Thousand Magical Herbs and Fungi _by Phyllida Spore_  
Magical Drafts and Potions _by Arsenius Jigger_  
Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them _by Newt Scamander_  
The Dark Forces: A Guide of Self Protection _by Quentin Trimble_

Other Equipment

_1 wand  
1 cauldron (pewter, standard size 2)  
1 set of crystal phial  
1 telescope  
1 set of brass scales_

Student may also bring an owl OR a cat OR a toad

PARENTS ARE REMINDED THAT FIRST YEARS ARE NOT  
ALLOWED THEIR OWN BROOMSTICKS

She skimmed the list of books; Potions, Transfiguration, History of Magic. If those were some of the lessons she swore never to complain about homework, learning about magical creatures' beats math's any day. 'Wait…witches actually use wands' she thought with a smile. She almost let out a scream when she read that broomsticks were real, vowing to learn to fly even if it was near impossible. It was all real and Scarlett couldn't wait one more minute, but sadly she had to.

**A.N yes it is a bit short and I am afraid you will all have to wait a few more days till the next update, I have homework to do. :( on a happier note thank you to all those who added this as a favourite story, you made my day!**


	3. Chapter 2- Through the Brick Wall

Chapter Two- Behind the Brick Wall

The 15th of August certainly took a long time to arrive in Scarlett's opinion; time had never gone so slow. Her 11th birthday had passed and it had seemed to her just like any other day. Being a year older did not feel any different. When the day finally arrived she woke excited and quickly got ready, she lay on her bunk reading till Mrs Moore came into the room with Professor McGonagall, "you are, I hope, ready to leave Miss Potter." the Professor queried. Scarlett simply nodded, hoping that if she kept her mouth shut McGonagall would be less stern. "Very well then. We will be taking the underground into the city centre. Don't forget the list of required items."

Professor McGonagall was silent during the walk to the station and Scarlett followed her example, pressing her lips together to stop the flow of questions she wished to ask. Arriving at the station the Professor purchased two tickets before handing one to the girl; the tube ride was also silent, though Scarlett could barely sit still. When they finally arrived they walked up the steps onto a busy road lined with shops, and Scarlett let loose one question. "Can you buy these things in London?" she said in a rush. "Yes." McGonagall replied shortly, before walking into a dark and gloomy looking pub. Scarlett followed her, noticing that nobody else seemed to be able to see the building. She was led through the crowd of people and into tiny courtyard with a few rubbish bins. The professor drew her wand and tapped three times on the bricks of the back wall. The wall split as the bricks rotated and slide back forming a huge archway, though which Scarlett could see a quaint cobbled lane. "This" McGonagall stated "is Diagon Alley"

Together they walked through the bustling crowds passing shops with odd names like Twilfitt and Tattings, Flourish and Blotts and even Slug and Jiggers Apothecary. Scarlett wished she could look around quicker in order to take more of her first sites of the wizarding world, and McGonagall, seeming to sense this fact, slowed down to talk to her. "Our first stop in Gringotts, it is a wizarding bank, was built in 1743, and is run by goblins." She explained before Scarlett could even ask, "After that we will buy the rest of your school items, with your wand last." The professor sped up once more and Scarlett followed her, tearing her eyes from a sleek-looking broomstick in a glass case outside a shop labelled Quality Quidditch Supplies. The two witches soon arrived outside an impressive white marble building, which seemed to tower over every other building in the long alley. They climbed the steps that led up to it and Scarlett almost took a step back as she caught sight of a goblin standing in front of the huge brass doors, he was short, shorter even than Scarlett and had a beard, a sly look on his face, and strangely long fingers. He bowed to them as they passed and McGonagall nodded to him in greeting. Scarlett was then confronted with another pair of doors, this time silver and engraved with the words:

_Enter, stranger, but take heed  
Of what awaits the sin of greed  
For those who take, but do not earn,  
Must pay most dearly in their turn.  
So if you seek beneath our floors  
A treasure that was never yours,  
Thief, you have been warned, beware  
Of finding more than treasure there._

Scarlett shuddered at the thought, if they felt the need to warn people in such an obvious way, the 'payment' for robbery would be quite horrible. She trailed McGonagall into a high-ceilinged hall lined with high counters and full of goblins. There were goblins everywhere she looked, weighting out strange coins or gemstones, using quills to scrawl in large account books or walking through one of the countless doors that lined the walls of the building, followed by witches and wizards. Together with Professor McGonagall she stepped up to one of the goblins behind the vast counter. "Good morning, Miss Potter here wishes to withdraw some money from her family's vault." The goblin peered over the long counter and Scarlett resisted the temptation to step behind the tall form of the professor. "I trust you have a key, Madam?"

"Of course." McGonagall replied already drawing a minuscule golden key from a pocket for the goblin to examine. He stared at it for a few moments before calling forward a second goblin "Nagnok, could you please take these two down to vault 687?" the goblin nodded,  
"this way please." Scarlett clambered after the professor into the small cart that come hurtling up the tracks at the goblin's whistle. The cart then made its hurried descent into the torch-lit depths of the bank. They went left, right, right, left, straight ahead, and right then left as Scarlett attempted to keep track, a loud roar came from one of the tunnels and they even passed a lake.

Eventually (and after too many hairpin bends in Scarlett's opinion) the cart rattled to a halt outside a low arched door, the goblin stepped out and McGonagall followed. The door swung open and Scarlett gasped, she had never seen so many coins in her life! "This is the money left by your family" McGonagall explained while heaping some of the coins into a drawstring bag "this should be enough for your school equipment and a few other things you may want" Scarlett finally gathered her thoughts enough to talk "How much are these worth in pounds?" she queried picking up a strange silver coin. "Galleons, those are the gold ones are worth around five muggle pounds, and are worth seventeen of the silver ones, which are called Sickles. The little bronze ones are called Knuts and twenty-nine of them make up one Sickle." McGonagall answered, anticipating the question. Scarlett was once more amazed by how wealthy she now was, and stared at the stacks of gold until they left the vault.

The trip back to the surface was just as stomach churning; Scarlett was certain she was slightly green in the face as she walked out of the towering bank. After a brief stop at _Potage's Cauldron Shop_ the professor led Scarlett to a shop named Madam Malkin's Robes for all Occasions to buy her robes. Scarlett looked around while McGonagall talked to the owner of the shop, presumably Madam Malkin about Hogwarts school uniform, before she was led to footstool and told to stand on it. The shop witch waved her wand and a tape measure flew up and started taking Scarlett's measurements of its own accord, and Scarlett smiled at the simple display of magic. After a few more minute Madam Malkin broke the silence "that's you done, dearest." And Scarlett hopped down from the stool, paid for the robes, a hat and a black cloak before leaving the store. She loved her uniform as it had the thought of Hogwarts a bit more real.

Together with McGonagall, Scarlett visited several other store to buy parchment, ink, a trunk with her name embossed in silver, some crystal phials, a set of brass scales (which McGonagall explained were used to weigh potion ingredients), a telescope and Scarlett's favourite some quills including a beautiful eagle feather one. The pair the visited a bookstore, Flourish and Blotts to buy the set books and few books that McGonagall recommended which consisted of Hogwarts A History, Modern Magical History, A Basic Guide to the Wizarding World; for muggleborns, which according to the author would help explain things in 'muggleborn terms' and Quidditch Through the Ages. All of these books McGonagall explained, would help Scarlett keep up with her classmates. Next stop on the shopping trip was a noisy store called Magical Menagerie to buy Scarlett an adorable kitten; she was tiny, with blue eyes and a soft coat as black as midnight. The final stop was the one she had been looking forward to the most a trip to a quaint little store called _Ollivander's _to buy Scarlett her first wand.

**A.N thank you so much to HermioneandMarcus for my first ever review, I am glad you like the story so far. Yes I said a few days till the next update but I got a bit bored so here you go :)**


	4. Chapter 3- Answers at Last

Chapter Three- Answers at Last

Scarlett stood by the counter alone, the professor sat on a rickety stool across the room, there was a bell sitting on the counter in front of her. Just as she reached to ring it and soft "hello" came from the shadow cast by the towering shelves and she jumped sky high. "I expected you would be visiting soon Miss Potter." came the mystical voice again as an aged man stepped behind the counter "and with Professor McGonagall as well, fir and dragon heartstring was it not?" The professor nodded curtly and Ollivander turned back to Scarlett "you, of course are going to be needing your first wand!"  
"No, I came here to buy a cauldron." Scarlett said sarcastically, she was becoming quite impatient. From behind her came an odd sound seemingly from McGonagall, and it rather sounded like she was trying her best to hide a snort.

"Ahh, it seems your humour is as sarcastic as your father's at your age. I remember your father's first wand, eleven inches long, pliable and made of mahogany. He was destined to be good at transfiguration. Your mother however had a rather lovely willow wand, ten and a quarter inches and rather swishy, if I recall correctly she was rather good at charms. And then of course there was the eleven inch, supple, holly and phoenix feather wand I sold your brother last week-"  
"Brother!" Scarlett interrupted Mr Ollivander's monologue. He shot her an odd look and the professor cleared her throat loudly. "Very well then, which is your wand arm?"  
"Wand arm?" she had never felt so ignorant in her life.  
"Which hand do you write with, my dear?"  
to which Scarlett simple replied "right, sir" Mr Ollivander pulled out a tape measure and it, of its own accord began to take some strange measurements, such as the distance from her knee to her armpit and the distance between her nostrils. Mr Ollivander flitted around the room taking numerous boxes down from the shelves.

He placed around eight boxes on the counter in front of her, opening the first and presenting her with an ornate wand, it had a vine pattern that twisted round it. "Vine and phoenix feather. Ten inches, slightly bendy." She took it and gave it a wave, before the light bulb shattered overhead and it was snatched away. "Perhaps not. Try this one, pine and dragon heartstring, twelve inches, quite supple." A ton of boxes shot of the shelves around her as she waved the wand. The more wands she tried the higher the pile on the counter came, and the more frustrated she got. At that point the shop would have been in ruins if not for Mr Ollivander's frequent waves of his own wand to repair the damage.

Finally he handed her a beautiful wand with small flowers carved into the wood, this time he said nothing but as she held it warmth spread from her fingers right down to her toes. She gave it a slight wave and pale blue sparks shot out the end hitting the counter and causing a simple cherry blossom to appear. Mr Ollivander stared into her eyes and Scarlett felt like he was reading her very soul. "Cherry and dragon heartstring. Thirteen inches. Unyielding. You my dear are destined for great things, this is a powerful wand. My only hope is that you do not stray from what is good and light" he said this somewhat cryptically, even after Scarlett had paid for the wand (seven galleons and 4 sickles) and left the shop after Professor McGonagall she still wondered what he meant.

The pair ate lunch in a small tea room off the main alley and as Scarlett sat eating a bacon sandwich McGonagall finally spoke, "I expect you have hundreds of questions you want to ask me, and I can tell you have been holding them back all day, so ask away."  
"Mr Ollivander said I have a brother. Do I? Where is he? Is he older or younger? What's his name? Does he go to Hogwarts? Have you met h-" the professor put up a hand to stem the flow of questions.

"Yes you have a brother; he is in fact your twin. His name is Harry, and he is older than you by about fifteen minutes and yes he will be going to Hogwarts this year. I haven't seen him since you were both babies; however I know he looks considerably more like your father. Currently he lives with your mother's sister and her husband and son, they are all muggles." Scarlett took a few seconds to process this information before asking

"What do you teach at Hogwarts?"

"I teach transfiguration, though I am also head of Gryffindor house. There are four houses at Hogwarts; Gryffindor, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff and Slytherin." McGonagall took a sip of her tea as Scarlett thought of another question.

"What's a muggle?" McGonagall seemed surprised that she had not already answered this today.

"A muggle is what witches and wizards call someone without magic in their blood. About one in four children admitted to Hogwarts are muggle-born which means they were born to two non-magic parents, but have magic themselves. Your mother was a muggle-born and your father was a pureblood. A pureblood is what we call someone who has purely magical heritage, though realistically their and few families that can be called pure. You are a half-blood; your heritage is mixed, though we could probably call you a first generation pureblood as both you parents have magic. Finally you get squibs, which are non-magic people born into a magical family." Scarlett munched on her bacon sandwich as she listened to the answer and swallowed before asking

"Why don't I live with my aunt and uncle? What happened to my parents?"

"Well, sometimes there is a wizard, or witch that goes bad, and starts to believe they are better than all the others. About fifteen years ago there was one wizard who was far worse than those before him, he called himself Voldemort" McGonagall's voice quivered as she whispered the name "though everyone in our world calls him You-Know-Who or He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named. He had a band of followers called death eaters and together they planned to wipe out everyone who was not 'pure of blood.' Your parents were a great witch and wizard so he wanted them to join him, but they refused. They were brave people" she said with a slight smile

"Anyone who stood up to him, ended up dead and on Halloween ten years ago he came for them. Strangely enough the curse rebounded as he tried to kill your brother and he died instead, your brother was left with only a scar. You on the other hand disappeared that night, no one knows where to and everyone thought you had died as well. Your brother was sent to live with your Aunt, and when you were found several years back we left you where you were, where you were safe. You and your brother are famous in this world, the defeaters of the Dark Lord."


	5. Chapter 4- The Scarlett Express

Chapter Four – The Scarlett Express

Professor McGonagall had taken Scarlett back to the orphanage before giving her an envelope.  
"This is the ticket you will need to get to Hogwarts. I have explained that she is to drop you off at Kings Cross Station at ten thirty on the 1st of September; however she can't go onto the platform with you. Now to get onto platform nine and three-quarters you must run at the wall between platforms nine and ten. Don't be late the train leaves at eleven." After McGonagall left Scarlett took her trunk up to her room, wondering why witches had such an obsession with hiding things behind brick walls or at least going through them.

On the long-awaited morning of the first of September Scarlett woke early. She lay there in bed for several moments before the date suddenly hit her like a brick in the face (which hopefully would not be repeated later that day in her attempt to get onto the platform) she bolted upright and pulled on her normal jeans and a t-shirt before realizing it was 5.15am. Her heart sank as she noticed she had several hours until she was on her way to Hogwarts, so she cracked open her text books once more. Time simply crawled but when ten twenty finally arrived Mrs Moore dropped Scarlett off at Kings Cross Station with nothing but her trunk and Shadow, as she had christened the kitten, in her carrier.

Scarlett wheeled her trunk on a trolley to the wall between platforms nine and ten and swallowed her nerves. She swayed slightly on the spot before breaking into a sprint as she ran towards the wall, closing her eyes and waiting for the collision. But it never came. Scarlett opened her eyes to see the most beautiful steam engine she had ever seen, it was scarlet and black with Hogwarts Express written on the front. It was sitting next to a platform labelled nine and three-quarters which was, compared to the other platforms she had passed on her way there, rather empty.

She wandered towards the back of the train to find a compartment she liked and chose one about mid-way down the train, placing her trunk in the corner of the compartment before taking out Magical Drafts and Potions to read. Time passed quickly and the platform became more crowded and rowdy the closer it got to eleven. Bits of conversations drifted through the open door, "Who do you think got head girl?"  
"I hope I manage to get on the Quidditch team this year"  
"did you have a good summer?" along with various farewells for students family members. Eventually a skinny boy with scruffy black hair and a long fringe looked through the door of the compartment and said politely "do you mind if I sit here, every other compartment seems so full?" Scarlett nodded and moved to help him with his luggage, but he motioned for her to stay where she was. She watched him struggle with the heavy trunk until two identical tall red-haired boys came along to help him. Scarlett zoned at as they began to talk, re-reading how to make a sleeping draught correctly. Flobberworm mucus, Valerian sprigs, standard ingredient and lavender. She looked up to see the scruffy boy had chosen a seat in the opposite corner, the red hair boys had left the compartment and seemed to be saying goodbye to a rather large family outside, all with the same fiery red hair. Scarlett thought with a slight smile that she had just spied a family she would fit in well, by looks anyway. A whistle sounded shortly after the station clock struck eleven and the scarlet express began to move, gradually building up speed as Scarlett returned to her potions book. A few minutes later the compartment door slid open, it was the smallest boy of the red-hair family. He took a step in before asking

"Anyone sitting there?" gesturing towards the seat directly opposite the black-haired boy, the other end of the row Scarlett sat on. "Everywhere else is full." After a simple shake of the head (and a slight eye roll from Scarlett) the boy sat down glancing at the first boy before staring out the window.

"Hey, Ron" chorused identical voices, it was the two boys from before, they were too identical to be brothers so Scarlett guessed they had to be twins. They continued talking, something about someone called Lee Jordan and a tarantula, before one of the twins addressed the boy in the opposite corner.

"Harry, did we introduce ourselves? Fred and George Weasley. And this is Ron, our brother. See you later, then." Scarlett began to feel quite invisible, all these people coming and going and no one even seeing her. She stared at the boy the twins had called Harry seeing the same bright green eyes she saw every time she looked in the mirror. This must be her brother. Sure enough the red-haired boy (Ron was it?) soon burst out "are you really Harry Potter?"

The boy nodded.

Scarlett zoned out as Ron questioned Harry about his scar, his family and was soon brought back to earth by Ron's loud gasp.

"What?" came Harry's voice.

"You said You-Know-Who's name!" Scarlett could sense a huge case of hero-worship oncoming. "I'd have though you of all people-"

"I'm not trying to be brave or anything, saying the name, I just never knew you shouldn't . See what I mean? I've got loads to learn… I bet. I bet I'm worst in the class" Harry sounded very worried his would be so.

"I doubt it." Scarlett spoke up, sick of being part of the wall, "there are plenty of people who haven't grown up around all this, about quarter of the year probably. Me for example."

Ron jumped, he honestly hadn't noticed her presence "who are you then?"

Scarlett smirked, knowing that the answer would shock the other occupants of the carriage, "Me! I'm Scarlett Lily Potter. Nice to meet you." At the unexpected reply Ron almost fell of his seat and Harry beamed widely, "Scarlett! Hagrid said you'd be here somewhere. Ron, this is my sister."

"You're THE Scarlett Potter! Bloody hell I chose the best compartment on the train!" Ron exclaimed.

The train had now pasted out of London and into the countryside. Fields filled with livestock flashed outside the window as the train sped by. Ron and Harry stared out the window, watching the country lanes and green pastures go by. Scarlett reopened her book, this time reading about poisons and their antidotes, a very interesting topic in her opinion.

It was almost one there came a rattling sound before the door slid open and a smiling woman looked in a said "Anything off the trolley, dears?" Harry simply raced towards her digging in his pocket for change as Ron mumbled something about sandwiches. Scarlett stood and looked around Harry at the contents of the trolley. As she had expected I was wizard sweets, Chocolate Frogs, Licorice Wands and other not muggle things. Harry bought some of everything before saying to Scarlett that they could share.

"Hungry, are you?" Ron asked when Harry returned to his seat, tipping everything he had bought onto the empty seat next to him.

"Starving," he replied taking a massive bite out of a pumpkin pasty. Scarlett grabbed a cauldron cake delighting in the unfamiliar sugary taste. Ron however had taken out a misshapen bundle and proceeded to unwrap it, revealing four sandwiches. He looked inside before saying "she always forgets I don't like corned beef."

"Swap you for one of these," Harry said waving one of the pasties around under Ron's nose "go on-"

"You don't want this," he said, referring of course to the sandwiches "it's all dry. She hasn't got much time, you know, with five of us."

"Come on Ron, have a pasty. Harry bought more than we can eat by ourselves you know." Scarlett interrupted. Ron gave in and together the three of them dug into the small feast.

Scarlett was chewing on a rather tough licorice wand when Harry asked "what are these?" he was holding up a small package labeled Chocolate Frogs "they're not really frogs, are they?"

"No," Scarlett replied "they are just chocolate in the shape of a frog, but they have this stuff called croakoa in them which makes them act like real frogs. Anyway they come with cards about famous witches and wizards which you can collect."

Ron gave Scarlett an odd look, she just sounded like she had swallowed a text-book, "and I thought you were raised by Muggles?" He had expected to be answering the question himself, though he didn't even know that much about the sweet.

"Yes I was raised in a muggle orphanage, but I got a book from Diagon Alley about the Wizarding World." Scarlett flushed a bit; she realized she had just sounded extremely nerdy in front of her brother.

Harry however did not seem to be paying much attention, he had already ripped open his chocolate frog and was looking at the card. "So this is Dumbledore" he said excitedly.

"Don't tell me you've never heard of Dumbledore!" Ron seemed quite shocked "can I have a frog? I have over five hundred cards but I still don't have Agrippa or Ptolemy. I might get one of them!"

"Dumbledore isn't well known in the muggle world, you know." Scarlett said after inviting him to help himself "in fact, I would be surprised if anyone had heard of him at all!" She grabbed a chocolate frog, opening and grabbing it before it could leap away.

"He's gone!" Harry cried in shock as Dumbledore disappeared from the card.

"Well you can't expect him to hang around all day, he'll be back." spoke Ron "no, I've got Morgana again and I've got about six of her… do you want it?" he asked Harry "you can start collecting."

"In muggle photos people stay still, you know." Scarlett explained to Ron, before turning to Harry and saying "but in Wizarding photos the occupants move around like normal people."

"Do they? What, they don't move at all? Weird!" Ron sounded quite surprised; however his eyes soon strayed to the pile of wrapped chocolate frogs waiting to be eaten.

**A.N thank you to all those who reviewed, followed or favorited this story and I hope everyone is enjoying it so far :) bye for now**


	6. Chapter 5- Information Overload

Chapter Five- Information Overload

Scarlett looked down at the chocolate frog card sitting in her hand, reading what was written there. "_Salazar Slytherin_ _was the founder of Slytherin house at Hogwarts. He was one of the first recorded Parselmouths, an accomplished Legilimens, and a notorious champion of pure-blood supremacy."  
_"What house do you think you will be in?" she asked Ron and Harry.

"My entire family have been in Gryffindor for years, well apart from a few of us. So Gryffindor is most likely." replied Ron, "What about you, Harry?"

"I don't really know much about the houses, there are four, right?" Harry looked a bit confused, "Slytherin, Hufflepuff and two others?"

"That's right, four houses, Ravenclaw, Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin. They say each house values a certain thing," Scarlett explained "Ravenclaws are meant to be intelligent, Gryffindors are supposed to be brave, Slytherin-"

"Is where the bad ones go." Ron interrupted, his mouth stuffed with a pumpkin pasty, "And Hufflepuff is for everyone else."

"I bet I'm in Hufflepuff." Harry said glumly.

"Maybe, but imagine being put in Slytherin," Ron shuddered "And anyway you defeated You-Know-Who, you couldn't be a Hufflepuff."

"I am sure Slytherins aren't all bad, I mean they are meant to be ambitious not evil. And besides Hufflepuffs are kind and loyal, not pathetic." Scarlett contradicted.

"Well-" Ron opened his mouth to argue back.

"What are these," Harry asked hurriedly, holding up a packet of Betties Botts Every-Flavour Beans.

"They are a bit like Muggle jellybeans." Explained Scarlett

"Yeah, sort of" said Ron "but better. You want to be careful with them though," he warned Harry "when they say every-flavour they really mean every flavour, George even said he got a bogey flavoured one once." He bit into one grimacing at the flavour of sprouts. By the time Scarlett had eaten several beans (cheese, dirt, olive and toffee) there was a knock on the door of their compartment. The door slid open to reveal a round-faced boy, who looked to be around the same age as them, however he looked close to tears.

"Sorry" he sniffed "but, have you seen a toad anywhere? It's just I've lost him"

Ron and Scarlett shook their heads, "I am sure he'll turn up" said Harry optimistically "and if we see him we'll tell you."

The boy gave a weak smile before leaving the compartment.

"Don't know why he is so bothered, if I had a toad I would lose it as soon as I could" said Ron "although I am not much better off with Scabbers. Do you have a pet?"

Scarlett glanced at the rather pathetic looking rat before answering "I have my new kitten, Shadow" she reached up to release Shadow from her carrier, careful not to let her jump on Scabbers. Ron looked to Harry, who simply pointed at his owl's cage saying "her name's Hedwig."

Ron looked slightly jealous before he smiled slightly "although the twins taught me a spell to turn him yellow, probably won't work. I'll show you...look." He pulled a rather shabby wand out of his trunk; it was chipped and had something silvery sticking out the end. "Unicorn hair is nearly poking out" he explained. He raised his wand and was about to open his mouth when the compartment door slid open. It was the same boy from before, however this time he had a bushy-haired, buck-toothed girl with him, she was already in her robes. "Has anyone seen a toad, Neville's lost one," She said bossily. Scarlett rolled her eyes as the boys shook their heads "we've already said we haven't seen it, and it's not like we are hiding it from him." She replied.

The girl glared at Scarlett before spotting the wand in Ron's hand, "oh, are you doing magic. Let's see then." Ron looked as if he wished the ground would swallow him up, he raised his wand and cleared his throat "Sunshine, daisies, butter mellow, turn this stupid, fat rat yellow" nothing happened, Scabbers remained grey, and didn't even wake up.

"Are you sure that's a real spell? Well even if it is, it isn't very good, is it?" she said snobbishly "I've tried a few simple spells myself, just for practice of course and they've all worked for me. No one in my family has magic at all, my parents were so pleased when I got the letter, and I've heard it's the best school of magic in the world. I've know all the books by heart, of course, do you think that will be enough? Anyway I'm Hermione Granger, and you are?" she said this all at a mile a minute and didn't seem to expect answers to be questions.

Scarlett was shocked, she had read her books a few times, but she had hardly memorised them. By the looks on their faces Ron and Harry hadn't either.

"I'm Ron Weasley" Ron murmured, he seemed quite overwhelmed by the amount of pure chatter that had been aimed at them.

"Harry Potter" Scarlett's brother said.

"Really? Are you?" responded Hermione "I have read all about you, of course – did you know you are in _Modern Magical History_ and _The Rise and Fall of the Dark Arts _AND _Great Wizarding Events of the Twentieth Century. _I bought them for a bit of background reading."

"Am I?" Harry looked quite surprised at the knowledge.

"You didn't know, I would have found out everything I could if it was me." She replied.

"Oh, I bet you would have," muttered Scarlett, this girl was seriously irritating. Hermione turned back to Scarlett, "So then, what's your name?"

"Scarlett Potter," she said with a smirk which soon fell with Hermione's reply.

"Are you two related, brother and sister or something?" she said, gesturing between Scarlett and Harry.

"What?" Ron nearly yelled "you've heard of Harry, but not Scarlett? I mean she is as famous. You know, presumed dead, turned up in a muggle orphanage. Seriously, front page of the Daily Prophet?"

Hermione simply looked more and more confused, "She's not in any of the books I have read."

It was silent for a moment, and more than slightly awkward.

"What house do you think you'll be in? I hope Gryffindor for me, it sounds the best by far and I heard that Dumbledore himself was in it. Although I suppose Ravenclaw wouldn't be too bad. You guys better change, I expect we will be arriving soon. Anyway, if you haven't seen Neville's toad" Hermione left the carriage, taking Neville with her.

There was a pause as the boys seemed to struggle to find something to say.

"Well, firstly, the Daily Prophet is a newspaper right?"

**A.n. thanks to those who reviewed, and sorry for the time between updates. Have exams so I am a bit busy. Make my day and leave a review, constructive criticism is welcome as it will help me improve. so bye for now and have a great day**


	7. Chapter 6- It Can Sing?

Chapter Six- It Can Sing?

Scarlett walked down the train searching for the toilets. The boys would be getting changed in the compartment so she chose to find somewhere else. After changing into her new robes she walked back passing compartments full of students, before she literally bumped into one of Ron's brothers, Fred or maybe it was George.

"Sorry, I wasn't really looking where I was going" she apologised wishing she could become part of the wall behind her.

"It's fine. Hey you were in the compartment with our brother Ron right?" one brother said and Scarlett nodded "my name is Fred, and this is George, how about you?" the other asked,

"Scarlett Potter" she replied, not sure whether to hope they had heard of her or to pray they hadn't.

"Really?" George said before exchanging a glance with Fred, Scarlett guessed they would be of the former group then, "Do you remember what happened then?" they said in unison.

"What do you mean?" Scarlett answered "what happened when?" the twins exchanged another look

"The night your parents died? You disappeared? Everyone thought you died! And then you just turned up in a muggle orphanage!" Scarlett told them honestly that she had no idea, even after the twins had left and she had continued her walk down the train she wondered what HAD happened that night, and she realised she knew next to nothing about herself, a bit of a shock.

She knocked on the compartment door, before sliding it open and returning to her seat. Ron and harry were immersed in a conversation about Quidditch teams, Ron was just explaining why he supported the Chudley Cannons and in Scarlett's opinion the list of reasons was far too short, seriously his explanation started with "well they haven't won in a while but…"

Looking out the window she saw how the sky was becoming a dark shade of purple-ish grey, and the train slowed and rolled into the station. A voice rung through the train saying to leave all luggage, as it would be taken to the school separately. Once on the platform a voice boomed out over the heads of the massive sixth and seventh years, a light came from a lamp being held by a giant man as he yelled "firs'- years! firs'- years over here! All right there Harry?" the line of around forty first years followed the man, who Harry had explained was called Hagrid, down a narrow winding path.

"Yeh'll get yer firs' sight o' Hogwarts in a sec" the man named Hagrid said bellowed over his shoulder "jus' round this bend here"

There was a loud gasp as the group saw the school for the first time. There was a huge lake and then on the other side a huge castle perched of the edge of a mountain, its windows glowing with light and its turrets seeming to touch the sky. Scarlett had never seen anything as beautiful.

"No more'n four to a boat!" Hagrid called just as Scarlett noticed the many small boats littering the lake shore, she spun trying to find Harry and Ron to share their boat only to see Neville and Hermione had already clambered in with them. Hagrid had a boat to himself and Scarlett could only spot one other boat with only three people in it. She walked towards the boat, surveying the pale, blond boy who sat in it with two huge very mean looking first years.

"Everyone in?" Hagrid called once she was seated "right then- FORWARD" as the armada of miniature ships set sail across the lake, Scarlett trailed her hand in the water, watching as it sent ripples running through the mirror like surface and distorting the stars which were reflected in it. It was completely silent as the boats drew closer to the cliff face, the castle towering above them. "Heads down!" called Hagrid, the boats had reached the cliff and sailed through an opening in the cliff, which had been hidden by a cascade of ivy. The boats continued through a dark tunnel and stopped at a place that looked like a tiny harbour, only that it was underground.

Hagrid led them all through a passage then up to the colossal front doors of the castle. They climbed a short flight of steps before Hagrid knocked on the door.

The sound echoed and the hinges creaked as the door swung open. It was Professor McGonagall and she waved everyone in. They all followed her into a massive hall, bigger even than the one at Gringotts, and lit with old-fashioned torched rather than electric lights.

Scarlett could hear hundreds of muffled voices coming from behind the marble door to one side, however the professor led them past the marble staircase and through a door on the opposite side of the hall, into a small (well by comparison anyway) chamber. They all crowded together, while Scarlett stood slightly off to one side. "Welcome to Hogwarts. The start of term banquet will begin shortly, but before you take your seats in the Great Hall you will be sorted into your houses. The Sorting is a very important ceremony because, while you are here, your house will be something like your family within Hogwarts. You will have classes with the rest of your house, sleep in your house dormitory and spend free time in your house common room." Scarlett wondered how long it had taken Professor McGonagall to memorise this little speech, and how many times she had said it. "The four houses are called Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin. Each house had its own noble history and each has produced outstanding witches and wizards. While you are at Hogwarts, your triumphs will earn your house point, while any rule breaking will lose house points. At the end of the year the house with the most points is awarded the House Cup, a great honour. I hope each of you will be a credit to whichever house becomes yours.

The Sorting Ceremony will take place in a few minutes in front of the rest of the school. I suggest you all smarten yourselves up as much as you can while you are waiting." Her piercing gaze lingered on a few more scruffy looking students before she strode out of the room leaving the first years behind. Scarlett ran her fingers through her hair to get rid of the knots, smoothed her uniform and straightened her skirt. Hopefully she at least looked presentable. A few of the first years started quiet conversations amongst themselves. Quite suddenly and altogether unexpectedly silvery grey people floated through the wall behind them. Several people screamed and Scarlett jumped sky-high before she remembered reading that Hogwarts had ghosts; that had to be what they were, real live ghosts, well maybe not so much live but they had to be real.

The ghosts noticed them, and the plump, happy looking one babbled on about how he hoped they were all in Hufflepuff. He was soon interrupted by Professor McGonagall's return, and all the ghosts streamed out through the wall opposite. The students lined up at the professor's order, with Scarlett near the back and followed her into the Great Hall. Scarlett was amazed by the beauty of room, not only did it feel like it was the size of a football stadium, it was lit by thousands of candles floating in mid-air. The other students sat at four long tables with golden goblets and platters in front of them and the ceiling looked exactly like the sky outside, just as Scarlett had read it would. Professor McGonagall led the line of first years up to the front before stopping short of the fifth table, where Scarlett could see, was where the teachers sat. The professor placed a stool in front of the gaggle of first years, and then put a hat on the top of that. This hat was similar to the one Scarlett had bought for herself in Diagon Alley however it was frayed, patched, dirty and seemingly quite normal. Well that was what Scarlett thought before it began to sing.

**A.N okay bit of a filler chapter sorry, should have the next one up soon. I am being a bit random with my updates for now, as I have exams for the next 3 weeks YAY! Actually not sure if that is sarcasm or not. Anyway thanks to EnsnaringTime for the reviews and to everyone who followed or favourited :) so what house do you think Scarlett will be in? Hufflepuff?**


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